Durham dairy farmer Michael Schmidt was found guilty of selling and distributing raw milk on Wednesday, a decision that overturned his 2010 acquittal.

While it is not against the law to drink unpasteurized milk in Canada, it is illegal to sell it despite the niche demand in Ontario and other provinces.

Health officials maintain that milk must be pasteurized before it is sold, as it can contain pathogens like salmonella, listeria and E. coli – all harmful or deadly if consumed.

But Schmidt, a vocal advocate of food freedom, insists that Canadians shouldn’t be told what they can or cannot drink. He said he won’t give up the fight to endorse and sell raw milk despite the latest court decision.

Like-minded supporters say the pasteurization process kills beneficial micro organisms that aid in digestion and metabolization, among other arguments in favour of the milk.

Do you think people who want to drink raw milk should be able to buy it, if they understand the risks? Should farmers face jail time if they disobey the law? Have you or would you drink unpasteurized milk?

I was blown away the first time I tasted fresh from the cow raw milk! It was SO yummy. I often say to folks that ask, If you’ve not had fresh raw cream in your morning coffee then you’ve not yet lived!

I drank it for years growing up on my Grandfather’s farm. Now have a local source and have been re-introduced to the great flavor and health benefits of raw milk. I don’t believe this battle in the states and Canada has as much to do with health as it does the muscular ;lobbies of the dairy conglomerates!

Used to have Jersey Cows & goats, drank my own milk, cooked and baked with it, love it sold the animals went back to store bought for a few years NO Comparison have bought another goat again, the extra work is worth it. Food FREEDOM! All the way! I never sold the milk, since I know the consequences.

So silly, I just bought raw grass-fed cow’s milk while vacationing in Washington State. It is sooo delicious! Had to buy a jug of it just because I could. Why is RAW milk illegal to sell in Canada? We are so backwards on this issue.

Yes, I was pleasantly surprised at how yummy my first glass of raw milk was! The short story of why raw milk is illegal in Canada has to do with the fact that big business wants it that way. How else can they make us all dependent upon the food production and distribution system and make money off of it/us?

Farmers are still allowed to drink their own raw milk. If it were really that dangerous, would this be allowed?

How many thousands of years have humans been (and still are) drinking raw milk? Many, many, many.

Just being political here, if a farmer can sell raw meat that could be consumed by people, why can’t he sell raw milk? What people do with it is up to them. I don’t have to cook my meat but nothing prevents me from cooking it if I want to. Just another way farmers are taxed, controlled and belittled by the government.

It is not illegal to sell cigarettes and other tobacco products, yet these are proven to be hazardous to our health. So why should it be illegal to sell raw milk, if, as you say, they make it known that we are “at risk” if we consume it. It should be our choice, not the government’s.